Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks also worked on war film Saving Private Ryan together (Picture: AP)

Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks are set to follow Band Of Brothers and The Pacific with a new HBO World War II drama.

The new commission will be based on Donald Miller’s Masters Of The Air and will explore the aerial battles of the pilots enlisted in the Eighth Air Force – known as the men of the Mighty Eighth.

Spielberg, Hanks and Gary Goetzman will all return as executive producers, while frequent collaborator and Justified creator Graham Yost has expressed interest in writing episodes for the series.

Band Of Brothers, which told the true story of 101st Airborne Division’s ‘Easy Company’ received widespread acclaim scooping six Emmys, while sister show The Pacific was less well-received in spite of its more impressive eight Emmys.

Spielberg and Hanks co-produced Band Of Brothers (Picture: BBC)

The new series is a huge commitment for HBO, with war dramas running up astronomical costs due to special effects, pyrotechnics and large ensemble casts.

Band Of Brothers cost $150 million (£95m) to produce, while The Pacific was budgeted at a whopping $200 million (£126m).

British actor Damian Lewis made his name in Band Of Brothers, with his character Major Richard Winters helping him later land a soldier role in Homeland for which he recently won a Golden Globe.